Little River Village, the Meng family's eldest branch.
Diao Siniang happily hummed a little tune, her mood finally clearing after several gloomy days. She had never expected to find such good things on the mountain. If she had known it was safe, she would have gone up long ago.
Meat bubbled and steamed in the pot, its fragrance filling the kitchen. Squatting in the courtyard and cleaning mushrooms, Meng Anzhi and Meng Anci seemed not to smell it at all, concentrating only on their work.
They had cleaned a whole basin of honey mushrooms until not a speck of dirt remained. Diao Siniang came out of the kitchen in her apron, glanced at the wooden basin, and smiled in satisfaction.
"If you'd had the sense to act like this sooner, would your eldest uncle have sold you?
"You really don't know pain until the stick lands on you. And you, Meng Anci, if you ever give me that sinister look again, I'll gouge out your eyes and stomp on them like bubbles."
The side of Meng Anci's face was red and swollen from the beating, and the scabbed blood on his forehead was jarring to see, but his voice was exceptionally meek and ingratiating. "Eldest Aunt, I was wrong. From now on, I'll do whatever you say."
Diao Siniang clicked her tongue... The third brother's wife had the face of a vixen, and her two children had inherited some of her looks. Somehow, the famine years hadn't starved them to death.
She gave a soft snort. "Good, as long as you know you were wrong. Go wash the mushrooms."
Meng Anci obediently agreed and carried the wooden basin to the well with his sister. He used a gourd dipper to add water, and the mushrooms floated and slowly spun on the surface.
He and his sister had picked them with their own hands. They were all leg-kicking mushrooms... There wasn't a single honey mushroom among them.
The eldest and second branches all deserved to die. They had bullied his father and mother, robbed their family of their things, and now they wanted to sell his sister and drive his youngest aunt to her death. They deserved to die, every last one of them.
After washing the mushrooms, Meng Anci carried them into the kitchen with Meng Anzhi. "Eldest Aunt, the mushrooms are washed."
Diao Siniang took the basin and opened the pot. It was full of meat, and a wave of fragrance hit them. Meng Anci swallowed and stood on tiptoe, watching Diao Siniang put all the leg-kicking mushrooms into the pot.
In a soft, sweet voice, he said, "Eldest Aunt, when it's done, may I have a sip of the broth?"
Meng Anzhi grabbed him, struggling to suppress her fear. "Eldest Aunt, I want some meat broth too."
Diao Siniang's eyes flashed. "What does a girl need meat broth for? If you want some, go drink it at your master's house."
Meng Anci chuckled. Just as he had said, currying favor was useless. Eldest Aunt still wanted to sell his sister. Seeing that the two children hadn't moved, Diao Siniang shouted angrily.
"Get out, get out, get out! Don't stand around in the kitchen getting in the way. If you don't behave, forget meat broth-I won't even give you water."
Meng Anzhi took her younger brother by the hand and walked out of the kitchen, looking back three times with every step. Her eyes never left the pot of meat.
Wang Guihua happened to see the scene from next door. She was cooking chunks of pig's blood in her kitchen when she saw the two children gazing longingly at the meat in the eldest branch's pot.
Remembering the look Jin Shanyao had given her before leaving, she turned and ladled a bowl of pig's blood from the pot. Just as she was about to take it out, she thought better of it and spooned half back, then left the kitchen with the remaining half bowl.
"Anzhi, Anci, come here." Wang Guihua stood in the courtyard and waved to the two children.
Meng Anzhi and Meng Anci exchanged a glance, then obediently climbed through a gap in the mud-brick wall.
"Second Aunt."
Wang Guihua handed them the half bowl of pig's blood. "Take it behind the house to eat, and don't let your eldest aunt see."
Meng Anzhi held the bowl, looking surprised. For a moment, she couldn't understand why Second Aunt was giving them food. Didn't she dislike them?
Seeing them staring blankly at her, Wang Guihua cleared her throat. "If your youngest aunt comes back, don't go saying I mistreated you, got it?"
Meng Anzhi nodded. So she was afraid their youngest aunt would come back and beat her.
But she didn't need to be afraid anymore. Once the eldest branch's meat was ready, everyone could go die together...
Mushrooms stewed with wild boar were delicious to begin with, and with the famine raging, Diao Siniang hadn't eaten her fill in months. Unable to resist, she fished a piece of pork out of the pot and began gnawing on it.
Delicious, so delicious...
"Mother, what are you eating?"
Meng Tietou suddenly ran into the kitchen, giving Diao Siniang a fright. "Child, why don't you make a sound when you walk?"
Meng Tietou ran to the stove and used the spatula to fish out some meat. "You were just too busy eating to hear me." He pinched the meat between his fingers, hissing from the heat... He tossed it from hand to hand two or three times before throwing it into his mouth.
Mumbling around it, he said, "Mother, I heard people in the village say Meng Anci's youngest aunt is a swindler. Is that true?"
Diao Siniang jabbed a finger hard against his forehead. "Stay out of grown-ups' business. Where's your sister?"
"She's gathering river clams by the river. I heard my cousin say his mother was cooking pig's blood, so I knew our family must be making something good too. I just didn't expect it to be meat."
Diao Siniang said proudly, "That's my clever son. All right... stop hanging around the kitchen. We'll eat when your father gets back."
"Mother, let me have one more piece. I haven't had meat in ages." As he spoke, he fished out another piece with the spatula and held it in his fingers.
Once he was out of the kitchen, he felt the urge to pee.
He turned straight around and headed for the outhouse in the back courtyard. He had only taken a few steps when he saw Meng Anci and Meng Anzhi, holding a cat and a dog and stroking their fur.
The big yellow dog was sturdy and imposing, his coat shining gold in the sunlight. The mountain cat had pointed ears, a sharp gaze, and sleek fur, making Meng Tietou's eyes light up.
He had long heard that Meng Anci's youngest aunt had a cat and a dog who could hunt in the mountains, and he had wanted them for a long time.
Meng Tietou hitched up his trousers, abandoning his trip to pee. He strutted up to the two little tots and kicked Meng Anci's leg. "Give me the dog."
Meng Anci instinctively hugged Dahuang tighter. Without a word, he stared coldly at Meng Tietou, who felt uncomfortable all over being stared at by a little child.
He raised his leg and stomped hard on Meng Anci's ankle.
"Ah..." A miserable scream rang out.
Dahuang had sunk his teeth into Meng Tietou's calf, scaring him so badly he wet his trousers.
Wet urine streamed down his trouser legs.
Hearing the scream, Diao Siniang hurried out. When she saw her son clutching his leg and rolling on the ground, she rushed over to check.
Then she slapped him on the head. "What are you howling for? There's nothing wrong with your leg."
Meng Tietou held up his leg to look. Sure enough, the skin wasn't even broken, but the pain just now had been real. He rolled over and sat up, urine and dirt smeared all over him.
He pulled open his trousers and looked inside, then scratched his head. "Mother... this dog bit me. I want to eat dog meat."
"All you know is eating. Isn't a whole pot of meat enough for you?"
Hearing Diao Siniang refuse, Meng Tietou flopped backward with a thud and rolled all over the ground. "I don't care! I want dog meat, dog meat!"
"All right, all right. When your father gets back, I'll have him beat the dog to death and stew him for you."
At that, Meng Tietou sat up with a thump, saliva running from the corner of his mouth. He hurriedly wiped it away.
Diao Siniang glared at him in disgust. "You're eight years old and still drooling. Aren't you ashamed?"
"Mother, I don't know why either. It just came out on its own."
"All right, all right, go play."
After the two left, Meng Anci laid his little hand on Dahuang's back and slowly stroked him... The fear in his eyes gradually faded. Dahuang and Xiaoli had been left with them by their youngest aunt; he must never let them eat the two of them.
The wind rustled through the leaves. Meng Anzhi and Meng Anci held hands and waited quietly, waiting for the eldest and second branches to return so everyone could eat together.
"Sister-in-law, the broker's here! Where's Anzhi? Hurry and bring her out for the broker to see!" Meng Hongyi let out a bellow, startling Meng Anzhi into leaping to her feet.
Meng Anci kept her firmly behind him, staring at the front courtyard with a wary expression.